Rating: 
Summary: ALRIGHT, HERES THE REAL SCOOP ON THIS DVD...
Review: A lot of people have being going on about how bad the video quality on this dvd is, but either they're eyes are messed up, they have defective copies, or they just don't have good enough television sets (most likely the latter). Despite hints of a little graininess here and there (which is how the film naturally looks anyway), i found no problems with the video quality; it's certainly better than the VHS; you'll find the VHS is alot brighter, with less contrast - not as realistic.
No problems that is, when i played it on my big screen tv. But, when i played it on a smaller tv, there definately was a big difference; all the terrible graininess that everyone's talking about was there. So, i guess the problem is that the movie needs to be viewed on a fair-sized, hi-resolution television set in order to get the really nice quality (which it is). NOW, why 4 stars instead of 5 ???
Well... While the overall remastering of the sound is good (could use more bass though), it's the reMIXING i'm a little ify about. Some of it is good, but a lot of it ISN'T. Long time fans of the film and accompanying CD will notice several things in the performance that weren't there before. Extra vocal ad libs (one of which during "Shaking the Tree" when it can clearly be seen that Gabriel's lips aren't moving, and another at the tail end of "Secret World" where his voice suddenly sounds a whole octave lower - strange. Over-sight? Laziness?)
For the most part, these changes don't intrude too much (kinda nice actually to hear a different mix since i'm so used to the regular one), but there are times when it just should have been left the way it was. In particular, "Solsbury Hill", which has always been my favourate part of the film. Different/more vocal ad libs, and the end of the song has been totally rearranged. After the last chorus, it goes right to the "hey hey hey..." bit, and THEN the keyboard lick comes in. For me, it's really quite annoying, but for others it may not be. EXTRA FEATURES:
The features i was thouroughly happy with (i was thrilled to know there were going to any "extras" at all). The "timelapse" feature was neat, showing the equiptment being rolled in and setup, the lighting and sound checks, people filing in, the concert in it's entirety, people leaving, and then finally packing everything away for the next show... all in ultra fast motion (it takes a little over a minute). Theres a couple of nice little "behind the scenes" documentarys to, one for "Secret World", and one for his more recent "Growing Up" tour. Both are informative and show some cool offstage footage. Worth seeing. Also included is a remix of "Quiet Steam" (the song itself is not a remix of "Steam", but a total re-recording), over which a montage of photos from the tour are shown. The photos aren't very interesting, but the remix of "Steam" is quite cool.
_______________ All in all, it's WORTH GETTING, even if you already have the VHS, or laserdisc. If your a huge fan, like myself, i'm sure your gonna get this anyway (you know you are), so whats the point of the review, but i hope this has been informative for those unsure of what they're getting into.
LONG LIVE PETER GABRIEL!!
Rating:
Summary: Gabriel and band's performance equals 10 stars!!
Review: True, there is some grain to be seen on this DVD, being that it was shot on film in 1993, mostly in low light. It looks a lot like the first half of U2's "Rattle and Hum," but not quite that grainy. There are some moments on the DVD when the grain can't be seen; even when it can, it isn't that big of a distraction, at least on my 37-inch TV. Gabriel and his band are nothing short of amazing. Their sound is tight, energetic and moving, for lack of better descriptives. Some have complained that the sound and video don't always link together - I only counted a couple times where it is obvious, when Tony Levin takes his right hand away from his bass on "Sledgehammer" although his playing still is heard. (They did film/tape two nights at the same venue in Italy, I think.) But hey, let's face it, almost every concert film has had some post-gig doctoring - Levon Helm has gone on the record saying his drumming is about the only thing live on the Band's "The Last Waltz" becaues he refused to overdub his drum parts. "Secret World Live" is one of the greatest concert films ever, period. This version of "Solisbury Hill" could be the greatest incarnation of Gabriel's declaration of independence from his former band, Genesis. The sight of him trapped inside a red phone booth on the opener, the then-new "Come Talk To Me," is great music theater without ever being campy or overblown. Gabriel is a true master of the stage - he spends about 97 percent of his time in motion. The DVD is well worth its affordable price, even though the picture isn't immaculate like some think it should be. Actually, the grain adds atmosphere and character to the film, at least on smaller to mid-sized TVs.
Rating:
Summary: Goofy AND Cool
Review: This concert is excellent, Peter Gabriel puts on a terrific show with an excellent support band and gorgeous vocalist Paula Cole. The music in this DVD is mostly taken from the "US" album ("Come Talk to me","Steam", "Blood of Eden","Secret World" "Kiss that Frog" "Washing of the Water" and ) which is a great album.
The high points of this concert are indeed from it : "Come talk to me" and "Secret World". The greatest hits are included too: "Sledge Hammer", "Don't give up", "Solsbury Hill" and the other highlight in this DVD : "In your eyes". Peter Gabriel and the Band put a great show that manages funny, sharp, dramatic, goofy AND very cool. Sound quality is excellent though I only listened to it in a low end 2.0 system. The video transfer is poor - as in grainy - but totally watchable because of the great show. The extras are not nearly as interesting : a)Slow Steam Photo Gallery has very nice pics but Steam should have never been slowed down.
b)Concert Set-up Timelapse : Once you've seen a concert timelapse you've seen them all and this one has no music to it so it's quite dull
c)The "behind the scenes" is barely insightful or interesting but you would miss it if it hadn't been included.
d)The film "taster" of Growing Up is just that. The show and music are great so this DVD is a must-have in any collection. 4 stars out of 5 because of the grainy transfer and poor extras.
Rating:
Summary: ALRIGHT, HERES THE REAL SCOOP ON THIS DVD...
Review: While the overall remastering of the sound is good (could use more bass though), it's the reMIXING i'm a little ify about. Some of it is good, but a lot of it ISN'T. Long time fans of the film and accompanying CD will notice several things in the performance that weren't there before. Extra vocal ad libs (one of which during "Shaking the Tree" when it can clearly be seen that Gabriel's lips aren't moving, and another at the tail end of "Secret World" where his voice suddenly sounds a whole octave lower - strange. Over-sight? Laziness?)
For the most part, these changes don't intrude too much (kinda nice actually to hear a different mix since i'm so used to the regular one), but there are times when it just should have been left the way it was. In particular, "Solsbury Hill", which has always been my favourate part of the film. Different/more vocal ad libs, and the end of the song has been totally rearranged. After the last chorus, it goes right to the "hey hey hey..." bit, and THEN the keyboard lick comes in. For me, it's really quite annoying, but for others it may not be. EXTRA FEATURES:
The features i was thouroughly happy with (i was thrilled to know there were going to any "extras" at all). The "timelapse" feature was neat, showing the equiptment being rolled in and setup, the lighting and sound checks, people filing in, the concert in it's entirety, people leaving, and then finally packing everything away for the next show... all in ultra fast motion (it takes a little over a minute). Theres a couple of nice little "behind the scenes" documentarys to, one for "Secret World", and one for his more recent "Growing Up" tour. Both are informative and show some cool offstage footage. Worth seeing. Also included is a remix of "Quiet Steam" (the song itself is not a remix of "Steam", but a total re-recording), over which a montage of photos from the tour are shown. The photos aren't very interesting, but the remix of "Steam" is quite cool.
_______________ All in all, it's WORTH GETTING, even if you already have the VHS, or laserdisc. If your a huge fan, like myself, i'm sure your gonna get this anyway (you know you are), so whats the point of the review, but i hope this has been informative for those unsure of what they're getting into.
LONG LIVE PETER GABRIEL!!
Rating: 
Summary: Great concert...Poor video quality on dvd
Review: I was so excited to have this concert come out on dvd. Peter Gabriel is so talented, and this concert is blow-away amazing. Imagine how my heart stopped when I saw the very poor video transfer on this Universal Music dvd. It is in widescreen, but the techs fell asleep on the transfer. My original laserdisc looks 20 times better (thank God I didn't sell it!). Much of the video content appears blurry and there is little detail. I know it is not the camera guy's fault, because the laserdisc version looks clean and detailed (this concert is high-quality all the way). The dvd really looks that bad, and I blame Universal Music. The sound gets five stars, and the extras are very nice, when most concert dvd's lack any. The 'making of' and the preview of the Growing Up tour are great. Get this dvd for the extras and the sound, not for the video. Why did Universal drop the ball on one of my all-time favorite concerts? I feel sick when I watch this dvd version...I'm glad I kept the laserdisc!
Rating: 
Summary: a feast for the ears and eyes
Review: I've been a Peter Gabriel fan for years and have been to several of his shows, but until last week I'd never seen the "Secret World" concert footage before (although I've listened to my "Secret World" CD hundreds of times.) After seeing it, I can't stop smiling. What an amazing show - right up there with Talking Heads' "Stop Making Sense" and U2's "Live in Boston" as my all-time favorite concert movies. I shouldn't be surprised, given Gabriel's gifts as both a musician AND a visual artist. Certain images will forever remained burned into my brain... trapped in a bright red British phone booth during COME TALK TO ME; his "breathing shadow" at the end of SAN JACINTO; rowing down the conveyor belt "river" during SLOW MARIMBAS then happily skipping around the stage while singing SHAKING THE TREE; and ending with a completely exuberant IN YOUR EYES. I'm not going to quibble with video quality (it wasn't apparent to me) or sound synching (very minor... don't worry, this ISN'T Britney Spears lip-synching our National Anthem, for crying out loud!) What I was left with was an immense appreciation for Peter Gabriel's infectious energy and charismatic stage presence. Add to the mix a VERY talented band (Paula Cole is luminous) and one of the most innovative stage shows you'll ever see = an incredibly satisfying way to spend an hour and a half... over and over again! What a feast for the ears and eyes.
Rating:
Summary: Goofy AND Cool
Review: This concert is excellent, Peter Gabriel puts on a terrific show with an excellent support band and gorgeous vocalist Paula Cole. The music in this DVD is mostly taken from the "US" album ("Come Talk to me","Steam", "Blood of Eden","Secret World" "Kiss that Frog" "Washing of the Water" and ) which is a great album.
The high points of this concert are indeed from it : "Come talk to me" and "Secret World". The greatest hits are included too: "Sledge Hammer", "Don't give up", "Solsbury Hill" and the other highlight in this DVD : "In your eyes". Peter Gabriel and the Band put a great show that manages funny, sharp, dramatic, goofy AND very cool. Sound quality is excellent though I only listened to it in a low end 2.0 system. The video transfer is poor - as in grainy - but totally watchable because of the great show. The extras are not nearly as interesting : a)Slow Steam Photo Gallery has very nice pics but Steam should have never been slowed down.
b)Concert Set-up Timelapse : Once you've seen a concert timelapse you've seen them all and this one has no music to it so it's quite dull
c)The "behind the scenes" is barely insightful or interesting but you would miss it if it hadn't been included.
d)The film "taster" of Growing Up is just that. The show and music are great so this DVD is a must-have in any collection. 4 stars out of 5 because of the grainy transfer and poor extras.
Rating: 
Summary: No Genesis covers!!!??!?!!?!?
Review: Peter Gabriel's best work was with Genesis even he admits this and yet he won't do The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway, Firth of Fifth, Carpet Crawlers or Watcher of the Skies or even I know What I like just another sellout!!! What is wrong with this moron of pop!
Rating:
Summary: Secret World Live DVD
Review: When I first played Secret World Live DVD on my 1080i 46" HD set I thought my monitor was malfunctioning. Yes, the picture is that bad. Forget about progressive scanning coming to the rescue for it only appears to make things worse. I was going to return the DVD until I really had a chance to listen. The audio track is thoughtfully mixed in 5.1. They've even taken some to some creative sound artistry providing some interesting and creative 5.1 mixing. What I found most striking about Secret World Live DVD was not the visual aspect of the concert but the music itself. For example, Steam. Not one of my personal favorites (over played) BUT the arrangement and interlude leading up to the song is truly hypnotic. Many of the songs on this DVD are arrangements you wont hear on Growing Up Live DVD.
Purchase this DVD for the music and secondly for the visual presentation. I find myself playing the DVD while leaving the set off.
I have written to Realword Productions and have requested an explanation as to the poor mastering of the video aspect. They have yet to reply.
In conclusion, if you have HD ability you will be deeply disappointed visually. Line doubling only makes things worse. Gabriel is about 41 in this concert footage.
If you seek visual and audio candy get Growing Up Live DVD. High quality mastering in both audio and video. Gabriel was 53 when shooting Growing Up Live DVD. His daughter provides excellent back-up, lead vocals and is truely talented.
By the way, visit petergabriel.co.uk - very interesting site.
Rating:
Summary: The best concert DVD
Review: This is more than a concert; it is a show, a drama. The musicians fit perfectly for Gabriel's sound. Paula Cole adds so much with her voice to the feeling of the songs that I would say at times this is a concert of Gabriel/Cole. The song selection is excellent. The stage design which changes all the time according to the theme of the song is inspiring. Every action of the musicians adds so much to the concert. I write this much, and yet at this moment I am frustrated, cause I know, my words are not describing sufficiently how I am touched by this concert. I have Gabriel's last DVD as well, simply because I bought this one first. Had I bought the other one first, would I buy this one? Maybe not, and that would be a terrible mistake.
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